by Charlene Muhammad

LOS ANGELES (FinalCall.com)�A decade after the uprising here that set South Central L.A. ablaze, residents, grassroots activists, political leaders, clergy, and city officials gathered at the Lucy Florence Coffee House April 27 for a KJLH-FM 102.3 two-hour Town Hall meeting to reflect on the tragic three-day incident.

Hosted by Jacquie Stephens, it was one of many forums and discussions on the 10-year anniversary of the uprising that focused a spotlight on race relations, police brutality, racial inequality and the depth of Black frustration.

Analysts weighed in on what has changed, remained the same, or is needed since a cross section of angry residents took to the streets April 29, 1992 for three days to protest the not-guilty verdicts of four White police officers who beat Black motorist Rodney King.

According to the Center of Los Angeles Research Collection, the civil unrest left 55 people dead, thousands injured, over 1,100 buildings damaged or destroyed, and repair expenses totaling nearly $1 billion.

Robert Saucato, board chair of the federally funded Community Development Bank initiated by former President Bill Clinton, said that since the unrest, South Central businesses have experienced a boost economically.

With funding of over 245 loans since 1996 and $130 million to local entrepreneurs, the bank has been able to support the growth of Los Angeles, he said.

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Ca.) was vocal during the unrest, expressing anger at the lack of attention to its root causes�lack of opportunity, poverty, police abuses and violence�and vowing not to be used by the power structure to calm angry constituents. Today, Rep. Waters believes the focus must be on progress, not so much prepare for the next riot.

"People are working very hard, even in spite of a downturn in the economy, not only to develop the community, but to train people," she stated.

In addition to moving funds into the community, Community Build and Project Build programs helped restructure and rebuild South Central�s economy and invest money in human potential, Rep. Waters said.

Educated, skilled citizens now must come back to the community and help bridge the gap between government and social programs and people who want to change their lives but cannot get through the system, said Rep. Waters.

One could view the glass as half empty or half full, according to Rebuild L.A. former director Bernard Kinsey. Of the 1,100-plus properties destroyed, at least 80 percent have been rebuilt, he said. It is important to hone in on what has been accomplished versus what has not, Mr. Kinsey argued.

Others, like Bo Taylor, executive director of Unity One, a gang intervention and prevention program, believe South Central has remained stagnant, even with so-called economic strides and political gains.

"You have a society in L.A. county that�s basically been disregarded�young people. And from the ages of 18-35, people don�t have a voice and a lot of injustice is being done," he said.

Problems stem from both the police department�s treatment of community residents, and the treatment of officers in the community, Mr. Taylor said. There are also persistent problems like disparity in employment, especially for ex-offenders, he added.

"For the last 10-years I haven�t seen a lot of change. It�s actually gotten worse and it won�t be another 25 years before another uprising takes place. I don�t even think it�ll be five years," he said, adding that old guard political and community leaders don�t want to pass the baton and recognize that what they�ve done still doesn�t work.

Syndicated columnist Anthony A. Samad said economic development reviews provide an illusion of change when, in fact, little has changed. In 1992, he notes, South Central had few outlets for expression by residents and for community input. Capital and employment opportunities were scarce, and elected and civil rights leadership somewhat denied grassroots issues, Mr. Samad explained.

"What we continue to see in our community is a disengagement, a disenfranchisement of young people. We continue to see a disenfranchisement of those who seek to get out of low wage training jobs to step up into a higher quality of life," he said.

Given the recent ouster of Chief Bernard Parks, if the Los Angeles Police Department returns to oppressive tactics used by officers in 1992, another riot is possible, Mr. Samad said.

With average southern L.A. homes costing $300,000, the American dream is farfetched, even for those who are hopeful, he continued. Blacks still have an over- reliance on government, when private industry and community activism drive social progress, Mr. Samad argued.

Mr. Taylor said home sales rose when citywide truces in 1992 curbed gang violence. "When we established peace 10-years-ago, everybody saw an opportunity to come in and rip-off the community, so when they got what they wanted, they pulled back," he said.

"You can build this community up as much as you want, put billions of dollars here � but if you don�t invest in these young people, you�re wasting your time, because until you address the needs of these young people in the community, you�ll be right back at square one," the activist warns.

Across town, Black, White, Korean and Latino residents and business owners marched nearly a mile from the First African Methodist Episcopalian Church through South Central in a show of solidarity and expression of improved race relations. The groups say they are working together to make progress and develop a sense of shared community.

Black-Korean relations�already tense after the fatal shooting of Black teenager LaTasha Harlins by Korean grocer Soon Ja Doo, who received probation, not jail time, from a White female judge�exploded during the rebellion. Korean liquor stores and grocers became targets for fires and vandalism, prompting some store owners to falsely tag "Black Owned" to their storefronts and windows.

Many South Central residents see continued economic disparity. Korean communities have improved vastly, while Blacks continue to funnel money out�and receive little business from others in return, they say.

Residents point to businesses like the Slauson Swap Meet, where the majority of owners are Korean, yet the majority of patrons are Black. How much money is funneled back to us in terms of scholarships and schools; where is the economic return on our dollars? residents ask.

Despite the tragedy of the rebellion, the community was able to keep the number of liquor stores rebuilt to less than 50 out of 201, said Karen Bass, executive director of the Community Coalition, which was founded in 1990 to combat the war on drugs and mass incarceration of Blacks.

A 1991 Community Coalition survey found problems with drugs and alcohol clustered around liquor stores. Rather than arrest people for loitering around the stores, the coalition challenges irresponsible business practices.

Civil rights attorney Nana Nymfi says racial, political and social polarization of the community was at crisis levels in 1992. Black people felt disrespected by one another and by outsiders, when they went to corner stores, she says.

"What happened with LaTasha Harlins, people had that (memory) in their guts, in their hearts, and so when Rodney King occurred and the verdicts came out, it really was not so much Rodney King, as much was it was the culmination for folks, the sign that Black people in L.A. were not to be taken seriously and were to be treated like chattel," she observed.

Whether politically, socially, or economically, the "aparthied-ization" of Los Angeles has increased since 1992, with city officials and upper income people trying to control the masses, she says.

Atty. Nymfi believes that if the trend continues, another riot is not far off.